The gorgeous heatwave is upon us and we’re thinking I’ll just sit back and have a Pimms! This sounds wonderful and refreshing but remember to top up this light drink with a sprig of mint and a few decorative slices of cucumber mmm delicious. For a non-alcoholic version use some of your cordial made from the elderflower you recently foraged from local hedgerows! Break (not cut) off the last of your rhubarb just below soil level, make lots of crumble to freeze and add some ginger to make spicy jam.
Lavender is out there in abundance too, so why not take the opportunity to pick some flower heads and make dainty lavender biscuits. Perfect as a lite bite and great with your coffee or tea.
June and July are the months for blackcurrants, so if you haven’t already, pick in abundance. It makes an excellent cordial.
Peg down strawberry runners to make new plants. If your plants are three years’ old, they will need to be replaced with new plants; your strawberries will produce fewer fruits each year.
Water copiously morning and evening – especially cucumbers, toms and sweetcorn – when the sun has disappeared from your plants and always water the soil not the plant. Water marks can scorch the leaves of your plants in our blistering hot sun and therefore, produce an unhealthy plant and very little fruits.
Cut tops from runner bean plants so they focus their energy on producing beans rather than leaders.
Lift and dry onion and garlic by plaiting together and hanging in a warm, airy, dry place. Save any chive seeds for next year and cut down the plant as it will grow again.
Remember to add freshly cut herbs to a plastic bag with a few drops of water in. This keeps them fresher for longer and refrigerate as soon as you can.
Sow beetroot, carrot, French beans, kohlrabi, lettuce, pak choi, peas, radish, spinach, spring cabbage and turnip this month. Happy Gardening 🙂